Buprenorphine was introduced as a potent analgesic with low abuse potential. Reports of buprenorphine abuse by opiate abusers have accumulated over the years, highlighting its use as a cheap alternative to heroin. The lower potency compared with heroin is being compensated by using a cocktail of buprenorphine with benzodiazepines or cyclizine. This study of 18 cases seen over 3 years broadly co...

The increasing use of buprenorphine among drug dependent subjects demands systematic enquiry into the clinical profile of buprenorphine withdrawal. Six male buprenorphine dependent (parenteral) subjects were observed for opiate withdrawal over a two week period. The onset of withdrawal occurred 48 hours after the last dose, peaked around the third day and lasted up to ten days. The withdrawals ...

When selecting the appropriate long-acting opioid to treat cancer pain, both analgesic efficacy and safety need consideration. Generally, opioids are well tolerated. However, of opioid-typical adverse events, respiratory depression is especially important because of the risk of a fatal outcome. Although all potent opioid analgesics act via the micro-opioid receptor system, they differ in how th...

Establishing effective cage-side pain assessment methods is essential if post-surgical pain is to be controlled effectively in laboratory animals. Changes to overall activity levels are the most common methods of assessment, but may not be the most appropriate for establishing the analgesic properties of drugs, especially in mice, due their high activity levels. Use of drugs that can affect act...

BACKGROUND Results from previous studies have shown favorable effects from the addition of buprenorphine to local anesthetics used for interscalene or axillary perivascular brachial plexus blocks. The main objective of the current study was to determine whether addition of buprenorphine could enhance bupivacaine analgesia after infragluteal sciatic nerve block. METHODS One hundred and three c...

Activation of brain nociceptin/orphanin FQ (NOP) receptors leads to attenuation of mu-opioid receptor (MOP receptor)-mediated antinociception. Buprenorphine, a high-affinity partial MOP receptor agonist also binds to NOP receptors with 80 nM affinity. The buprenorphine-induced inverted U-shaped dose-response curve for antinociception may be due to NOP receptor activation, given that, in the pre...

The aim of this single-dose, randomized, positive control, double-dummy, double-blind, parallel group study was to compare oral bromfenac 10 and 25 mg with sublingual buprenorphine 0.2 and 0.4 mg for treatment of postoperative pain. We studied 91 patients with moderate or severe pain after general surgical or orthopaedic operations, using pain intensity, pain relief, adverse effect, mood and se...